Review: Beautifully written and painstakingly charming, Il Mare is a romance movie that breathes life into a genre that has too many similar plots. I don't want to come off as a cold-hearted moron who thinks romantic movies are too cliched, please don't think of me as that? Simply put it this way, Il Mare is the kind of movie that leaves you utterly breathless. When you're done watching it, you just sit there and ponder on things you never knew you would think about. After the "fade to black," I lied there on my bed just watching the ending credits because I didn't want it to end. I'm sure all of you have felt this way either after watching My Sassy Girl or Fly Me To Polaris. I know these two movies are considered to be far and away instant classics in Asian Cinema, but Il Mare also has that sense of prestige that made the other two movies so lovable. And after watching this movie, I guarantee with all my heart and soul, you'll love this movie as much as I did.

The most noteworthy reason why this film is so magnificent is the subtleness in the plot. The whole story revolves around a very surreal seafront house that seems hidden and aloof from the crowded world. In all ways is this splendid little house a magical dream come true. There's a long, winding boardwalk to the front door and an exit that leads to the ocean. I can't say enough about how unbelievably pure and perfect this house becomes throughout the movie. When the time comes to actually "meet" our couple, you're already caught in the folds of bliss that has engulfed your imagination. And to think, the house itself is just a mere backdrop, or backbone if you will, to the couples' substantial relationship. When I say "relationship," I get a feeling of irony. The couple never really meet up in the movie, instead, they are entangled in a love letter type scheme that dips its wet feet into the world of sci-fi. The couple are writing letters to each other while living in the same world in two different times. Sung-hyun (Lee Jung Jae) is an aspiring architect who moves into his new home only to find a "welcome" letter from the previous owner. Eun-joo, played by the beautiful Jun Ji-hyun of My Sassy Girl, is the previous owner of Il Mare. She receives a letter from Sung-hyun that simply turns both their worlds upside down. It appears Eun-joo lives in the year 1999 and Sung-hyun in the year 1997.

As farfetched as the plot may seem, director Lee Hyun-seung never seems to disappoint. At first I felt this was going to be too difficult to understand because of the whole "wrinkle in time" idea. However, the story does not dwell upon that too long. The film doesn't want you to go to great depths to understand the time barrier between the couple. What it does want you to come to terms with, however, is the idea that these two people are destined lovers that may or may not ever meet each other because of fate's weird obstacle course. And when you understand that, then you'll see how melancholic this cinematic exposure is. We see two people, two years apart from meeting one another, trying desperately to connect in other ways than writing. There are scenes where they seem to go on a date, but in reality, they are there alone only keeping the other in mind and spirit. I commend the beautiful arrangement, almost bouquet-like, of the director during these sequences. Viewers will begin to understand the true test of love and how it will conquer all. It was one of the most tantalizing experiences my eyes will ever know. It was almost as beautiful as Jingle Ma's superior work in Fly Me To Polaris. It was pure visual splendor and it will undoubtedly touch your heart in more ways than one.